Patna: The Patna police special investigation team (SIT) arrested three more persons, including an employee with the public health and engineering department (PHED), on Friday for alleged involvement in the Rs 15 crore toilet construction scam.

Acting on a tip-off, the SIT conducted a raid in Patna and nabbed Priti Bharti, a data entry operator in the office of absconding PHED chief engineer, Vinay Kumar Sinha. She has been accused of receiving Rs 3 lakh from the government's account.

Priti was evading arrest ever since the scam came to the fore and Patna district magistrate Sanjay Agarwal ordered an investigation earlier this month. She was questioned at a secluded place for several hours by senior police officials.

In another operation, the SIT arrested Boby Kumari, an office-bearer of NGO Maa Sarveshwari Seva Sansthan (Bakhtiyarpur), from Indraprashtha Colony in Ranchi. Her husband Praveen Kumar Sharma was also taken into custody.

During search of the house of Boby Kumari, the SIT members recovered several cheques without signatures of the authorities concerned. Other incriminating documents related to the financial embezzlement were also seized.

Boby was the chairperson of the NGO headquartered at Bakhtiyarpur in rural Patna. The NGO has been accused of receiving Rs 2.15 crore from the government's accounts with Punjab National Bank. The treasurer of the NGO, Prameela Singh, is on the run.

City superintendent of police (central) D. Amarkesh, who heads the SIT, confirmed the arrest of the three suspects and said they would be produced in court after interrogation.

On Thursday, a deputy general manager of State Bank of India, Shiv Shankar Jha, was arrested from Buxar.

Jha was posted with the Gandhi Maidan branch of the bank when the scam took place. "Ten to fifteen cheques have been collected as sample from the accused," Amarkesh told The Telegraph on Friday.